Meeting New People
by Theindividualdifference
Summary: Bella is heading off to College where laughter, friendship, and maybe even romance await her. But will her journey be all plain sailing? It wouldn't be a true fan fiction without some drama now would it?;)


**Disclaimer: unfortunately i do not own Twilight, all rights to that are held by the lucky Stephanie Meyer. I wouldn't however mind if she handed Edward Cullen over to me ;)**

 ** _T_** _hat woman's gonna be the death of me._

I sat down at my desk with a heavy sigh, wiping my face free of sweat and retying my hair into a messy bun. I regretted the decision to invite my aunt Victoria to go for a run with me the moment I opened my mouth, but she was really trying to make an effort with me lately, I wanted to extend the same courtesy. I'd discovered my love for running a little over a year ago, I loved the freedom it gave me and how great it made me feel. No matter what kind of day I was having, I knew that at the end of it I'd get to blast some loud music and run the stress out of my body. It was therapeutic for me, or rather… it was when I went running on my _own._

Victoria was a very competitive woman, she had to be the best at whatever she put her mind to. If she wasn't, she'd keep trying and trying until she was. It was humorous to watch, and exhausting for her. So when the given the challenge of running with me, she leapt at it. Rather than the two mile round trip I usually took, we ended up running from our house all the way to the high school and back. Nine excruciating miles. I'd told her we should turn back when the rain began at mile four, she merely huffed and ran faster so she was out of earshot. She brought us round so that instead of running the way we came, we ran a special route parallel to the one we'd just taken. However, this meant dealing with uneven terrain as we were, essentially, running through a forest. Just because I loved to run didn't mean I wasn't clumsy, my mother always used to say I attracted danger. Whilst running I somehow managed to get my shoelaces tied around some branches on the forest floor and found myself lying in a heap, untangling myself with great difficulty when my aunt refused to stop and help.

Like I said. The woman would be the death of me.

I opened my laptop, deciding to quickly check my emails to see if any of my teachers had sent any last minute homework, when I noticed an ad for a new Instant Messaging service: Eclipse. It looked like a fun way to meet people anonymously and talk about common interests without having to show them all your personal information like you would on most Social media. Leaning my head on my hand, I idly clicked the link that took me to the page. I scrolled through a couple of chat rooms, reading people getting all excited about the new season of The Walking Dead. I entered a couple of interests in: Music, Theatre, Books, and watched the list of people filter out until only people with similar interests were left in front of my. Curiously, I scrolled through them. It was interesting, there were no profile pictures for the accounts we created, only a small box to write yourself a little bio filled with your interests and dislikes. I decided to look through some of the chat rooms, hoping to find one interesting enough to message into, and found one with twelve people all gushing over their excitement for College.

College.

I sighed, rubbing my face roughly and pushing the baby hairs that had already escaped my newly formed bun slick to my head. I had applied for colleges all over and had received a few offers back, I finally decided on going to California. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy Washington, I loved the scenery and the people were all really nice… But I craved heat. I couldn't stand how cold, wet and dreary my hometown was, I needed sun and warmth. I snorted, remembering how my mother used to tease me when I went for showers, claiming I needed the water in order to photosynthesise. Aside from loving the feel of the sun caressing my skin, my entire being changed in the heat. I was generally happier, lighter on my feet, my hair turned more glossy and transformed from a dull brown to a nice chocolate colour with flecks of auburn and gold that could catch the sun. It really was as if I were a flower, in need of constant sunlight and water to keep me healthy and sane.

As the anxiety of packing for college started looming over my head, I heard a quiet _ping_ from my laptop. I looked at the screen to find a purple flashing tab in the bottom right corner with "StrummingTheStrings" written across it. I clicked on it slowly, half expecting it to be someone looking for some kind of booty call or sending me picture that were PG18+, purely based on the stereotypes that had been crammed into my brain at school and by my aunt. Thankfully, it was only a simple message:

 **StrummingTheStrings** : Hey there 'Klutzybells' ;)

 **KlutzyBells** : Hey there :)

 **StrummingTheStrings:** What's a pretty place like you doing in a girl like this?

I snorted, rolling my eyes and chuckling to myself.

 **KlutzyBells:** Did it take you all day to come up with that gem?

 **StrummingTheStrings:** Nope, I'm afraid I'm just that smooth. You could say it just came to me in a dream ;)

 **KlutzyBells:** You should really consider asking your friends for a book of pickup lines for your birthday… I think it might come in handy for you ;)

 **StrummingTheStrings** : Well when the time comes I'm sure you'll be the one to buy it for me ;)

 **KlutzyBells** : Hmm, alright then Mr 'StrummingTheStrings'. If we become friends I'll get you a book of pick-up lines so you dont end up embarrassing yourself.

 **StrummingTheStrings** : Is that a promise, Miss 'KlutzyBells'?

 **KlutzyBells** : One I intend to keep.

 **StrummingTheStrings** : Just who do you think that book would work on 'KlutzyBells'? If my natural charm doesn't work on a woman then she's usually untrustworthy…

 **KlutzyBells** : Well… There's brain dead cheerleaders who think dairy products are their natural enemy, anyone with no self respect really…

 **StrummingTheStrings** : You don't think I could get a smart, sane girl to go out with me? I'm hurt.

 **KlutzyBells** : If you need a book of pick-up lines to do it? No ;)

 **StrummingTheStrings** : It would appear you have a hint of sarcasm about you 'KlutzyBells'… I like it.

 **KlutzyBells** : *Gasp* I'm sure I have _no_ idea what you mean, 'StrummingTheStrings'.

 **StrummingTheStrings** : You know, it's getting rather annoying calling you 'KlutzyBells', From now on, I'm just going to call you 'Klutz'.

 **KlutzyBells** : 'Klutz'… I like it. I think that entitles me to call you 'Strum', don't you think? Since your name is longer than mine.

 **StrummingTheStrings** : i think that sounds rather reasonable 'Klutz'. So, care to tell me something about yourself?

I was broken out of my thought train when Aunt Victoria called "Bella, time for dinner" I sighed and called back that I'd be down in a minute, turning back to my laptop and typing quickly.

 **KlutzyBells** : As much as I'd love to tell you all about myself, I'm afraid I have to go for dinner. But if you're here around the same time tomorrow, you might just learn a thing or two.

 **StrummingTheStrings** : You've peaked my intrigue, 'Klutz'. I'll be there, I look forward to talking to you tomorrow.

I smiled, closing my laptop softly and pushing back from my desk. Heading downstairs and eating dinner with my aunt, we spoke for a little while but I honestly couldn't tell you what about. My mind kept wandering to the conversation I'd had with the illusive 'StrummingTheStrings', something about him intrigued me, and I knew I wanted to know more about him. I excused myself to go and grab a shower, needing to wash the run and the sweat off of me, and finally start packing for my move to California the week after.

I began putting my things in boxes, packing up some of my favourite books to take with me and the summer clothes I hadn't been able to wear for a couple of months. Purely because it was too cold. I packed the things I didn't need to use, putting them in boxes which stacked neatly by the door. Once I'd packed up around half of my room I sat down on my bed, looking around at my mostly empty room and smiling at the thought of what was yet to come. I was nervous to go off to college, but so very excited. I'd never left my hometown, my parents always used to work in Seattle so if I needed anything they could just get it for me which meant I never really felt the need to go anywhere. But as soon as I saw my acceptance letter for California, I knew I had to go there. Something drew me to it, I couldn't explain it. I knew this was something I needed to do, a freedom I didn't know I'd needed until recently. I rubbed my face roughly, laying back on the bed with a soft _thump,_ bouncing on the bed slightly from the force.

California, here I come.

 **There we have it! Chapter one is done :) Hope you enjoyed it, let me know what you think and feel free to add it as a favourite or something!**

 **I'll try to upload again soon so stay tuned!**

 **See you next time!**


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